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Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy dies aged 83

Nimoy, who won fans worldwide for his role as Mr Spock in the Star Trek franchise, dies in Los Angeles.

27 Feb 2015 21:50 GMT

Actor Leonard Nimoy, who won fans worldwide for his role as Mr Spock in the "Star Trek" television and film franchise, has died at age 83.

Nimoy, who suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, died on Friday at his home in Los Angeles. His granddaughter Dani announced the death on Twitter.

"He was an extraordinary man, husband, grandfather, brother, actor, author - the list goes on - and friend. Thank you for the warm condolences. May you all LLAP. Dani," she wrote, using the acronym for one of Spock's most famous sayings - "Live long and prosper."

In his last tweet, posted Monday under his handle @TheRealNimoy, Nimoy himself said: "A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP"

Tributes quickly poured in from castmates, other actors, fans and the science community.

"I loved him like a brother. We will all miss his humour, his talent, and his capacity to love," said William Shatner, who played the hot-headed Captain James T Kirk on the ground-breaking "Star Trek", which debuted in the 1960s.

"Certainly he was a brilliant actor. But he also believed in working collaboratively," George Takei, who portrayed Mr Sulu on the sci-fi show, told CNN. "Leonard was also a very dear friend."

"Rip Leonard Nimoy. So many of us at NASA were inspired by Star Trek. Boldly go..." the US space agency said on Twitter.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Mark Frauenfelder, an entertainment commentator, said that Nimoy's passing is a loss for many fans, who got an introduction to science fiction from his movies.

"The show had incredible influence, and continues to have it today," he said. "It almost has been 50 years since it premiered and it still has a huge part of culture around the world."

"Even if Mr Spock was alien, we identified with his struggles and conflicts," he said.

In addition to acting, Nimoy was an accomplished director.

He directed two of the Star Trek films including one of the most well received, "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home." Nimoy also directed 1987 box-office hit "3 Men and a Baby" starring Tom Selleck.